Composite hook and loop fasteners, methods of their manufacture, and products containing them

ABSTRACT

A composite hook and loop fastener in the form of an elongated strip has an elongated loop component, a hook component permanently affixed to the loop component, and a backing layer disposed on a face of the wrap tie in a discrete region. The backing layer is used for permanent attachment of the wrap tie to a supporting surface. One end of the loop component is available for encircling an object to be wrapped and engaging the fastener elements of the hook component. The loop component has a self-supporting web of entangled fibers, the fibers forming both a sheet-form body and hook-engageable, free-standing loops extending from at least one surface of the body, and the hook component has fastener elements extending from a common base. The backing layer may be a pressure sensitive adhesive or a synthetic resin.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.09/818,197, filed Mar. 26, 2001 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,481,063, which was adivisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/187,936, filed Nov. 6, 1998,now U.S. Pat. No. 6,205,623.

BACKGROUND

This invention relates to composite hook and loop fasteners, methods oftheir manufacture and products containing them.

A typical composite hook and loop fastener is produced by takingpreformed hook and loop material and overlapping and attaching the twomaterials together along their edge margins or by totally overlappingone on top of the other. The attaching is usually done by ultrasonicwelding, thermal fusing or an adhesive bond. This step of attachingpreformed hook and loop material to form the composite fastener addsadditional cost to the manufacturing process. Hook and loop materialsmay also be laminated in-situ during the formation of the hookcomponent.

One particular application for an improved composite fastener, discussedin more detail below, is as a wrap tie for closing bags. An economicalbag tie commonly used in retail stores comprises a wire covered withpaper. The wire tie is wrapped around an open end of a bag and the endsof the wire are twisted together to close the bag. Another common typeof a bag tie is a clip tie that consists of a piece of plastic with anopening. A gathered open end of the bag is pushed through the side ofthe opening to close the bag. Other closures include strings and tapesand closing arrangements that employ adhesives or removably engageableelements.

The wire ties and clip ties are often used in retail stores where itemssuch as bakery products, fresh produce, dry goods, nails, etc. areplaced in a bag and sold by weight or number. The consumer usuallystores these products in the bags. The ties may be opened and closedseveral times before the bag is emptied. There is a need for low-costdependable repeated-use closures for this and many other applications.

SUMMARY

A composite hook and loop fastener in the form of an elongated stripincludes a loop component, a hook component permanently affixed to theloop component, and a backing layer disposed on a face of the wrap tiein a discrete region. The backing layer is used for permanent attachmentof the wrap tie to a supporting surface. One end of the loop componentis available for encircling an object to be wrapped and engaging thefastener elements of the hook component. The loop component has aself-supporting web of entangled fibers, the fibers forming both asheet-form body and hook-engageable, free-standing loops extending fromat least one surface of the body, and the hook component has fastenerelements extending from a common base.

In general, in one aspect, the invention provides a wrap tie in the formof an elongated strip. The wrap tie has an elongated loop componenthaving a web of fibers forming both a sheet-form body andhook-engageable loops extending from at least one surface of the body, ahook component permanently affixed to a first end of the loop component,the hook component comprising a base of synthetic resin and an array ofloop-engageable fastener elements integrally molded with and extendingfrom a first surface of the base, and a backing layer permanentlyaffixed to a second surface of the base opposite the fastener elements,for permanent attachment of the wrap tie to a supporting surface. Asecond end of the loop component is available for encircling an objectto be wrapped and engaging the fastener elements of the hook component.

Implementations of this aspect of the invention may include one or moreof the following features. The web of the loop component may benon-woven and specifically a needled non-woven. The non-woven needledweb may weight less than about 2 ounces per square yard (68 grams persquare meter). The non-woven web may be in a stretched, stabilizedstate. The loops of the loop component may extend from loop structures,and at least some of the loop structures may each have a common,elongated trunk portion extending from the web from an associated knotand multiple loops extending from the trunk portion. The loop componentmay have an edge margin encapsulated in resin of the hook component, anda remainder free of hook component resin. The edge margin may be about10% of the area of the loop component. The loop component may have anentire face encapsulated in resin of the hook component. The loopcomponent may have two broad, opposite sides, and loops may extend fromboth sides. The hook component may be shorter than the loop component,as measured along the wrap tie, and the backing layer may overlaplongitudinally the hook component and may be disposed on a side of thewrap tie opposite the fastener elements. The fastener elements of thehook component may be hook- or mushroom-shaped. The hook component maybe disposed at one end of the elongated wrap tie, and the hook-shapedfastener elements may extend toward the other end of the wrap tie. Thebase of the hook component may include an integral extension void offastener elements, for overlapping the loop component and forface-to-face attachment. The backing layer may be a pressure sensitiveadhesive or a synthetic resin. A removable release liner may cover thepressure sensitive adhesive layer. The release liner may overlaplongitudinally the loop component such that a portion of the releaseliner is exposed for grasping.

According to another aspect of the invention, a wrap tie has anelongated hook component having a base of synthetic resin and an arrayof fastener elements extending from a first surface of the base, a loopcomponent permanently affixed to a first end of the hook component, theloop component having a web of fibers forming both a sheet-form body andhook-engageable loops extending from at least a first surface of thebody, and a backing layer permanently affixed to a second surface of thebody of loop component for permanent attachment of the wrap tie to asupporting surface. A second end of the hook component is available forencircling an object to be wrapped and engaging the hook-engageableloops of the loop component. The hook component may be in a stretchedstate.

According to another aspect of the invention, a bag has an open end andan elongated, strip-form wrap tie according to this invention,permanently affixed to an outer surface of the bag for closing the openend. The wrap tie is permanently bonded to the outer surface of the bagin a discrete region along the length of the wrap tie. One end of theloop component is available for encircling the open end of the bag tosecure the bag in a closed state. The wrap tie may be permanentlyaffixed to the bag by a pressure sensitive adhesive layer or a syntheticresin. The bag may be made of synthetic resin or paper.

According to another aspect of the invention a sheet-form compositetouch fastener includes a loop component having a self-supportingnon-woven web of entangled fibers, the fibers forming both a sheet-formweb body and hook-engageable free-standing loops extending from at leastone surface of the web body, and a hook component having a base ofsynthetic resin to which loop-engageable hooks are integrally molded.The resin of the hook component extends at least partially underneaththe loop component and encapsulates fibers of the web body of the loopcomponent.

Implementations of this aspect of the invention may include one or moreof the following features. The loop component may have an edge marginencapsulated in resin of the hook component, and a remainder free ofhook component resin. The edge margin may be about 10% of the area ofthe loop component. The loop component may have an entire faceencapsulated in resin of the hook component. The loops of the loopcomponent may extend from a common side of the sheet-form touchfastener. The loops of the loop component may be arranged on a side ofthe sheet-form composite touch fastener opposite to the hooks of thehook component. The fibers of the loop component may be encapsulated inthe resin of the hook component and the loop component may compriseregions which are more encapsulated by resin than other regions.

According to another aspect of the invention a sheet-form compositetouch fastener includes a sheet-form loop component having a web offibers forming both a sheet-form web body and hook-engageable loopsextending from at least one surface of the web body and a sheet-formhook component comprising a base of synthetic resin to whichloop-engageable hooks are integrally molded. One edge region of the hookcomponent is permanently attached to a first edge of the loop componentand fibers of the first edge of the loop component are encapsulated byresin of said edge region of the hook component. The loop component hasa second edge, opposite said first edge, substantially free of resin ofthe hook material.

According to another aspect of the invention a method is provided formanufacturing the elongated, strip-form wrap ties of this invention. Themethod includes the following steps: Provide a longitudinally continuoussheet of a loop material of finite width, the loop material having loopsextending from at least a first surface. Permanently bond alongitudinally continuous strip of plastic hook material to the loopmaterial to form a laminate, with the hook material at least partiallyoverlapping the loop material widthwise and having a width significantlyless than the width of the loop material, the hook material having astrip-form base and fastener elements integrally molded with andextending from the strip-form base. Apply pressure sensitive adhesive toa predetermined region of a side of the laminate opposite the fastenerelements. Cut the laminate to form the wrap ties, each wrap tie having aportion of the loop material, a portion of the hook material, and alayer of the adhesive.

Implementations of this aspect of the invention may have one or more ofthe following features. For a wrap tie that has a removable releaseliner covering the layer of adhesive, the method further includes,before the step of cutting, applying a longitudinally continuous releaseliner to the laminate to cover the adhesive. The cutting at leastperforates the loop material and the base of the hook material to definelongitudinal edges of the individual wrap ties, and leaves the releaseliner longitudinally continuous. The cut wrap ties may be spooled uponthe continuous release liner for subsequent separation. The hookmaterial may be bonded to the loop material by ultrasonic welding,thermal welding, or pressure sensitive adhesive. The step of bonding mayalso include continuously feeding the loop material through a nipdefined between a rotating mold roll and a pressure roll, the rotatingmold roll defining a multiplicity of fixed cavities about its peripheryfor molding the fastener elements of the hook material, whilecontinuously introducing molten resin to the mold roll under conditionswhich cause the resin to fill the cavities of the mold roll and form thehook material, such that pressure in the nip bonds the loop material tothe hook material. The molten resin may be introduced to the mold rollin multiple, discrete regions along the roll, thereby forming multiple,parallel strips of hook material laminated to the loop material. Afterthe bonding step and before the cutting step, the laminate is slitlongitudinally into multiple, longitudinally continuous bands, each bandincluding both hook material, loop material and adhesive. The loopmaterial may be fed through the nip in the form of multiple parallelstrips, while forming the hook material to fill gaps between adjacentstrips of hook material in the nip.

According to another aspect of the invention a method is provided formanufacturing the elongated strip-form wrap ties of this invention. Themethod includes the following steps: Provide a longitudinally continuoussheet of a loop material of finite width, the loop material having loopsextending from at least a first surface of the loop material. Provide alongitudinally continuous strip of plastic hook material, the hookmaterial having a width significantly less than the width of the loopmaterial, the hook material having a first surface with fastenerelements integrally molded with and extending from the first surface,and a second surface, opposite the first surface, having a layer ofpressure sensitive adhesive. Bond the hook material and loop materialalong their length, with the loop material overlapping a longitudinaledge of the hook material and leaving the layer of adhesive uncovered byloop material. Cut the laminate to form the wrap ties, each wrap tiehaving a portion of the loop material, a portion of the hook material,and a layer of the adhesive.

According to yet another aspect of the invention a method is providedfor manufacturing a sheet-form composite touch fastener. The methodincludes the following steps: Provide a longitudinally continuous sheetof a loop material of finite width, the loop material having aself-supporting non-woven web of entangled fibers, the fibers formingboth a sheet-form web body and hook-engageable free-standing loopsextending from at least one surface of the web body, said loop materialhaving a substantially constant fiber density across its width.Permanently bond a longitudinally continuous strip of plastic hookmaterial to the loop material to form a laminate, the hook materialhaving a strip-form base of synthetic resin with fastener elementsintegrally molded with and extending therefrom and wherein saidsynthetic resin of the base of the hook component extends at leastpartially underneath the loop component and encapsulates fibers of saidweb body of the loop component. Cut the laminate to form the compositetouch fasteners, each composite touch fastener having a portion of saidloop material, and a portion of said hook material.

According to yet another aspect of the invention an apparatus isprovided for manufacturing the elongated, strip-form wrap ties of thisinvention. The apparatus includes a cooled, rotating forming rolldefining a plurality of inwardly extending, fixed fastener elementcavities at its periphery; a pressure roll positioned to cooperate withthe forming roll to define a nip, the pressure roll having an outersurface for supporting a continuous sheet of a loop material fed intothe nip; and an extrusion nozzle positioned to direct a continuous flowof molten resin toward the forming roll under conditions which cause theresin to fill the fastener element cavities and to form a continuouslayer of resin against the forming roll, such that the layer of resin isbonded to the loop material by pressure in the nip, to form a laminate.The apparatus further includes an applicator arranged to apply alongitudinally continuous layer of pressure sensitive adhesive, to adiscrete region of a side of the laminate opposite the fastenerelements; a guide arranged to direct a longitudinally continuous releaseliner to cover the applied layer of adhesive; and a blade arranged tocut in a transverse direction across the laminate to form individualwrap ties.

According to yet another aspect of the invention a method is providedfor releasably securing a container in a closed state. The methodincludes providing a wrap tie according to this invention; permanentlyadhering the wrap tie to a surface of the container; wrapping one end ofthe loop component about the container; and engaging the fastenerelements of the hook component with the loops of the loop component toretain the container in a closed state.

Among the advantages of the invention may be one or more of thefollowing. The wrap-tie of this invention does not have any sharp ormetal parts, which may cut the bag when they become exposed, pose injuryrisk for the consumer or oxidize and thus contaminate the bag and itscontents. There is no preferred direction or need to twist the wrap tie,thus making it easy to open and close the bag opening. Further the wraptie of this invention can be pre-attached to a bag automatically or canbe dispensed from a wrap tie dispenser for manual attachment to a bag.The very low thickness and stiffness of both the non-woven loop materialand the hook material, along with its low cost and good closureperformance, make the wrap tie a particularly useful component of manyproducts.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description of embodiments, and from the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a wrap tie having an elongated loopcomponent overlapping an end of a short hook component and adapted forpermanent union with a bag or similar article.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a bag having the wrap tie of FIG. 1attached to its surface.

FIG. 1B is a side view of a wrap-tie having loops on both sides of anelongated loop component.

FIG. 1C is a side view similar to FIG. 1B, of a wrap-tie having anelongated loop component, an end portion of which overlaps the entireback surface of a hook component.

FIG. 1D is a side view of a wrap-tie in which a hook component isattached in the middle of an elongated loop component.

FIG. 1E is a side view of a wrap-tie in which an elongated stretchedhook component overlaps an end of a short loop component.

FIG. 1F is a side view of a wrap-tie in which the hook strip is attachedface-to-face to the loop strip.

FIG. 2A is a photograph of a preferred non-woven loop material for useas a loop component, enlarged 50×.

FIG. 2B is a schematic view of the face of the non-woven loop materialshown in FIG. 2A.

FIG. 2C is a sketch of the non-woven loop material illustrating clustersof loop fibers extending from a fibrous mat.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a twisted wrap tie according to the invention.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are perspective magnified views of portions of a hookfastener and a stretched hook fastener, respectively.

FIG. 4C is a perspective, magnified view of a mushroom-shaped fastenerelement.

FIG. 5 illustrates an apparatus for forming and uniting components of awrap tie.

FIG. 6A is a perspective view of a portion of the apparatus of FIG. 5for forming the preform product of FIG. 7, while FIG. 6B is a view takenin plane 6B-6B of FIG. 6A.

FIG. 7 illustrates a web comprised of attached loop and hook bandsformed with the apparatus of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of four hook and loop segments formed byslitting the web shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a top view of a hook and loop segment that has been perforatedcut.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged side view of the hook and loop segment, takenalong line 10-10 in FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a cross sectional view of the interface between the hook andloop segments, taken along line 11-11 in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged side view of area 12 in FIG. 10.

FIG. 13 illustrates reciprocating ultrasonic welding of bands of hookand loop material to form a wrap tie preform.

FIG. 13A illustrates rotary ultrasonic welding of bands of hook and loopmaterial to form a wrap tie preform.

FIG. 14 illustrates thermal fusing of bands of hook material and loopmaterial to form a wrap tie preform.

FIG. 15 is a schematic illustration of an apparatus that dispenses wrapties from a carrier sheet.

FIG. 15A is a schematic illustration of area A in FIG. 15.

FIG. 15B is a schematic illustration of an automatic label dispensingapparatus.

FIG. 16A is a side view of stacked wrap ties.

FIG. 16B is a schematic illustration of a box dispenser for the stackedwrap ties of FIG. 16A.

FIG. 17 is a schematic illustration of an application of a wrap tie as asupport of a pipe against a wall.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIG. 1, a wrap tie 100 features an elongated strip ofnon-woven loop material 110, attached to a short strip of hook material120.

The strip of non-woven loop material has a first surface 114 withhook-engageable loops 112 and a second relatively smooth surface 116.The strip of hook material 120 has a first surface 122 with integrallymolded fastener elements 126 and a second smooth surface 124. Thefastener elements may be hook- or mushroom shaped, as illustrated, forexample, by hook-shaped fastener element 121 in FIG. 4A and mushroomshaped fastener element 121′ in FIG. 4C. The hook-shaped fastenerelements extend toward the loop material. The smooth surfaces of thehook and loop strips overlap distance d and are attached at joint 128 sothat the loops and hooks extend in opposite directions of the wrap tie.A pressure sensitive adhesive layer 130 covers the shaped fastenerelement 121 in FIG. 4A and mushroom shaped fastener element 121′ in FIG.4C. The hook-shaped fastener elements extend toward the loop material.The smooth surfaces of the hook and loop strips overlap distance d andare attached at joint 128 so that the loops and hooks extend in oppositedirections of the wrap tie. A pressure sensitive adhesive layer 130covers the remainder of the smooth surface 124 of the hook strip 120.For a face-to-face attachment of the hook and loop strips (FIG. 1F),i.e., attaching the surface of the loop strip having the loops to thesurface of the hook strip having the hooks, the base portion of the hookstrip 120 has an integral extension 129 without hooks for overlappingthe loops of the loop strip 110. The pressure sensitive adhesive layer130 is covered with a release liner 132, such as silicon coated paper.The release liner 132 overlaps longitudinally the loop component suchthat a portion of the release liner is exposed for grasping. In oneexample, the tie is 0.5 inch wide, dimension w, the loop strip is 3 inchlong, dimension l, the hook strip is 0.75 inch long, dimension 11, andthe overlap area 128 is 0.4 inch long, dimension d, all componentshaving the same width w. The thickness of the loop material may varybetween about 0.150 inch and 0.0100 inch, and the thickness of the hookmaterial may vary between about 0.100 inch and 0.010 inch.

Referring to FIG. 1A, the wrap tie of FIG. 1 is attached to an open endof a bag by the adhesive layer. The elongated non-woven loop strip iswrapped around the bag opening and the free end of the loop strip issecured to the hook strip by engaging the loops with the hooks. The wraptie may be prefastened and integrated with the bag, e.g., duringmanufacture of the bag, or it may be applied to the bag at the time ofits use, by removing the release layer and pressing the adhesivecomponent against the material of the bag. The bag may be made ofsynthetic resin or paper. In some instances the wrap tie may have,instead of the pressure sensitive adhesive layer, a synthetic resinlayer which can be thermally fused to the bag surface.

In such applications in which the products are considered disposableafter single use, the loop material only need withstand a relativelysmall number of hooking cycles (e.g., 3 to 5) over the product's usefullife. We refer to these as “low cycle” applications. Loop products inthis category may be fabricated to advantage with needled fabric thathas needle-formed loops on one or both sides. In certain cases, thematerial is in a permanently stretched and stabilized state, having beenstretched to increase its area in excess of 100%, as much as 150% ormore from its as-needled condition. A preferred needled and stretchedmaterial is formed of staple polyester yams of between about 18 and 4denier, preferably 6 denier.

Other applications, such as strapping or bundling, may require thehook-engageable loops to withstand a higher number of cycles and higherstress. These relatively “high cycle”, high strength applicationsgenerally are preferably achieved by using woven or knitted material orby forming loops with higher denier (or higher tenacity) fibers thanthose suitable for lower performance conditions. Loop products in thiscategory may be prepared by stretching an appropriate needled loopfabric in the range of 50 percent to 100 percent stretch, for example,followed by stabilization.

For certain applications, specially treated loop material may be used ina wrap tie. For example, on a bag that holds an electronic device andneeds to dissipate static electricity, non-woven loop impregnated withcarbon or stainless steel may be used. Carbon or stainless steel fibersmay also be blended with staple fiber to form a static electricitydissipative non-woven loop material. A two-sided non-woven loop materialmay be used on a wrap tie that, no matter if twisted, can be fastened tothe hook.

Additional configurations of a wrap tie include among others thefollowing: the loop strip 110 has loops on both surfaces 114 and 116(FIG. 1B), the loop strip 110 overlaps and attaches to the entire smoothsurface 124 of the hook strip 120, with the adhesive layer 130 beingintimately bonded to the loop side 114 of the strip(FIG. 1C), the hookstrip 120 attaches to the middle of the loop strip 110 (FIG. 1D), and anelongated hook strip 120, which may be of formed and stretched material,is attached to a short loop strip 110 (FIG. 1E).

In preferred embodiments, the non-woven loop material 110 (FIG. 1) isvery thin, but still self-supporting, and has relatively free fibersforming loops extending from one side or both sides of a continuous,tangled mat of fibers. In preferred embodiments the non-woven loopmaterial 110 comprises a needled fabric of staple fibers which has beenstretched longitudinally and transversely, to form a fabric of the formdepicted in FIGS. 2A and 2B.

In such a fabric the individual fibers of the mat follow no definitepattern as in a woven product, but extend in various directions withinthe plane of the fabric mat. The loops that extend from the loop productare of the same fibers that comprise the mat but extend beyond thegeneral mass of the mat, out of the plane of the mat, generally fromassociated knots 180, in the form of well anchored loop trees 250 (FIG.2C).

As shown photographically in FIG. 2A, and in the diagram of FIG. 2B, inrelatively low density fiber regions of a preferred mat a substantialnumber of the fibers of the mat of loop material 110 are taut (i.e., notslack, regionally straight), and extend between knots 180 of the loopmaterial fabric. The taut fibers 182 have been straightened by tensionapplied in at least one direction in the plane of the fabric mat 170,while the knots have been produced by slippage and agglomeration causedduring the application of stretching forces to the needled non-wovenfabric.

The knot density of the sample shown in the photograph was determined tobe approximately 180 knots per square inch by counting the number ofvisible knots within a given square area. The knots themselves arefairly tight, made up of several monofilament fibers, and areinterconnected by the taut fibers seen running between them. Betweenknots, the thin fiber mat is not very dense and is sheer enough topermit images to be readily seen through it. For low cost applications,the fabric preferably weighs less than about 2 ounces per square yard(68 grams per square meter).

In this particular embodiment, the fibers of the mat are held in theirtaut, straightened condition by a water-based, acrylic binder (notvisible in the photograph) applied to the side of the mat opposite theloops to bind the mat fibers in their straight condition to stabilizethe areal dimensions of the fabric, and to secure the loops at theirassociated knots. The binder generally ranges between 20 and 40% of thetotal weight of the fabric and in the presently preferred embodimentsaccounts for about one third of the total weight of the loop component.The resulting fabric is dimensionally stable and strong enough to besuitable for further processing by standard fabric-handling techniques.While the fabric has a slight stiffness, like a starched felt, thestiffness can be mitigated where desired by softeners or mechanicalworking.

As seen in FIG. 2C, loops 112 extend from free-standing clusters of loopfibers extending from the fibrous mat 170. The clusters 250 which haveseveral mono-filament loops 112 extending from a common elongated,substantially vertical trunk 252 we call “loop trees”. Each loop tree250 extends from a corresponding knot 180 in which the loops of thecluster are anchored. Interstices between individual filaments in thetrunk portion 252 of each tree or at the base of each bush, and in eachknot 180 provide paths for the wicking of liquid binder, under theinfluence of surface tension of the liquid binder, to provide additionallocalized stiffness and strength. Importantly, the density of clustersin the plan view is very low, leaving sufficient room between the“branches” of neighboring trees to accommodate hooks and deflected loopmaterial during engagement.

A more complete description of suitable non-woven loop materials may befound in U.S. Pat. No. 6,342,285, and a related pending PCT patentapplication entitled “Loop material, its manufacture and its use inproducts”, Publication No. WO99/11452, filed on Sep. 3, 1998, as acontinuation in part of the foregoing U.S. Patent, the entiredisclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

Referring to FIG. 3, the flexibility of the non-woven material 110allows it to be twisted several times and fastened on the hook fastenerstrip 120. Even if there are loops on only one face of the strip, hookengageable loops occur at all quadrants of the twist, to ensureengagement with the hook component. Further the loops around the slitedges of the loop strip are oriented in line with the fibrous mat 170,making the edges hook engageable.

A hook strip 120 compatible with the loop material is used. For anon-woven loop material made from staple polyester fibers having adenier of 6, a hook may be of the CFM-29 designation, available fromVelcro USA Inc. of Manchester, N.H., U.S.A. The CFM-29 hook strip hashooks of only 0.015 inch (0.38 mm) height. Especially when the hookcomponent is the elongated component as depicted in FIG. 1E, the hookstrip may be a stretched hook product. Referring to FIGS. 4A and 4B,when a hook product is subjected to lateral stretching, the material ofthe base web 150 decreases in thickness, from the original thickness toof FIG. 4A to the reduced thickness t₁, of FIG. 4B. The areal density ofthe fastener elements is accordingly reduced. For example, with hookform elements of a type having a conventional height of about 0.035 inchand a spacing l_(o) of about 0.050 inch along the rows, starting with aspacing w_(o), of the rows of about 0.025 inch and ending with a spacingw₁ of FIG. 4B of about 0.100 inch, the areal density changes by a factorof 4, from about 800 fastener elements 11 per square inch to about 200fastener elements per square inch. Starting with higher hook densities,higher final densities can be achieved to match the hooking needs ofparticular applications, while still of low cost.

The product of FIG. 1 may be economically formed by the process andapparatus illustrated in FIG. 5. Extruder barrel 308 melts and forcesthe molten plastic 310 through a slot-form die 312. The extruded plasticenters the nip 314 between base roll 316 and mold roll 318 containingmold cavities shaped to form the hooks of a strip-form hook fastenercomponent of the well known hook and loop type. The strip fastenermaterial formed in nip 314 travels about the periphery of mold roll 318to stripping roll 320, which assists in pulling the finished product 300from the mold roll, and from there to a windup device, not shown.

For more detail about the general operation of the apparatus of FIG. 5,the reader is referred to U.S. Pat. No. 5,260,015 to Kennedy, et al.,which discloses laminates made with loop materials.

There are many possible methods of feeding the non-woven sheet materialto the forming section of the hook forming device. In one example, shownin FIGS. 6A and 6B, several transversely spaced apart bands of non-wovenmaterial 350 are introduced about the periphery of the base roll 316 andenter nip 314 at the same time molten plastic 310 enters the nip atregions between the bands of loop material. The slot-form die hasalternating plugs and open die spaces, the spaces arranged to providemolten resin that fills the spaces 352 between the bands of thenon-woven loop material and produce limited overlap of the resin and thebands of non-woven 35 (FIG. 6B), for forming joints 128. The edgemargins of the bands of non-woven material bond intimately with the edgemargins of the molten resin with which bands of hook fasteners 354 areintegrally formed. The bond is formed by encapsulating fibers of theloop material with the molten resin of the hook material. Thereby acomposite structure of joined alternating bands of loop component andhook component are formed.

In one example, a web includes (FIG. 7), starting from the left, a 3inch wide strip of non-woven loop, an inch and a half wide strip of hookmaterial, a 6 inch wide strip of non-woven loop, an inch and a half widestrip of hook material and a 3 inch wide strip of non-woven loop. Thealternating strips of non-woven and hook material overlap partially,being bonded at joints 128. The overlap areas are for instance 0.4 inchwide. After formation, the web passes through a slitter where it islongitudinally slit at the mid-points A and C of the hook segments, andat the midpoint B of the 6 inch loop segment. This results in fourcontinuous length composite webs, each comprising a narrow band of hookmaterial joined to a relatively wide band of non-woven loop material(FIG. 8).

In the next step each of the four webs passes through a coating linewhere a pressure-sensitive adhesive is applied to the back of the hookstrip material, this followed by a step where a release liner is placedon the adhesive layer.

At that point each of the four continuous webs is perforated-cut(kiss-cut) along lines 400 through the loop and hook side but notthrough the release liner 132, as shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 12, to forma series of elongated bag ties. The direction of the kiss-cut 400 isperpendicular to the longitudinal axis 402 of the composite web, whichcoincides with the machine direction. A cross section of the web alongthe indicated direction 11-11 is shown in FIG. 11.

An alternative way to manufacture the wrap tie is to ultrasonically sealrespective preformed bands of hook and loop material. The two materialsare slit to the appropriate width and their edges overlapped andultrasonically welded with a reciprocating ultrasonic welder, as shownin FIG. 13, or a rotary ultrasonic welder, as shown in FIG. 13A. Theback of the hook material is coated with pressure-sensitive adhesiveprior to welding.

Another way to manufacture the wrap tie is to thermally fuse overlappingedge margins of preformed bands of hook and loop materials. Thermalfusing is performed with two rotary wheels 160 and 162, shown in FIG.14. Both rotary wheels are heated, and may have a knurl pattern on them.The wheels come in contact and nip the area to be joined, which in thiscase is the overlap area between the edges of the loop and hook bands.The heated wheels melt the hook resin and fuse it into and around thefibers of the non-woven loop, thereby forming a bond between the marginportions of the two bands. The mechanical surrounding of the fiber withthe melted, then solidified resin provides the necessary bond strength.

Different type of resins may be used to form either the hook or thenon-woven material. In certain preferred cases, as mentioned, thenon-woven material is made from polyester fibers and the hook materialfrom polyethylene.

The hook and loop material preferably differ in their heat properties.For example, the polyethylene melts at a lower temperature than thepolyester and thereby allows the thermal fusing of the hook resin aroundthe polyester fiber of the loop material, to form a strong mechanicalbond with dimensional stability.

The adhesive for layer 130 is preferably a pressure sensitive typeadhesive. In some instances, layer 130 may be a synthetic resin suitablefor thermal fusion onto a substrate.

Wrap ties carried by a common release liner 202 may be rolled into aroll 210. The wrap ties 206 have one end 208 attached to the releaseliner with the pressure sensitive adhesive and a free end 209. The roll210 may be fed to a standard labeler 200, shown diagrammatically in FIG.15. The release liner is arranged to pass under a sharp angle 212 arounda peel plate 204, where it reverses direction. The release liner isflexible and can change easily direction. However, the wrap tie has acertain amount of stiffness that causes the edge of the wrap tie 207 notto follow the release liner 202 around the peel plate 204, and toprotrude at the point where the release liner reverses its direction(FIG. 15A). In this way the peel plate automatically separates the wraptie from the release liner. The wrap tie may either be indexed ordynamically placed upon a moving bag on a bagging machine which producespolyethylene bags. Automatic label dispensing on a moving bag is shownin FIG. 15B. The leading edge 217 of the moving bag 218 trips anelectric eye 216. The electric eye may be a light emitting diode. Theelectric eye 216 sends a signal to the label dispenser 200 and thedispenser accelerates and transports the wrap tie 206 towards the movingbag 218. When the wrap tie 206 reaches a predetermined location 219 onthe bag 218 and while the wrap tie is still connected to the releaseliner 202 a tamp roller 214 presses edge 207 of the wrap tie 206 ontothe bag 218. The wrap tie 206, the bag 218, and the release liner 202continue to move at the same speed, while the tamp roller 214 pressesthe wrap tie onto the bag. Once the wrap tie is fully released from therelease liner and attached to the bag, the release liner stops movingwhile the bag continues to move away from the dispenser region. Theprocess repeats again when the next bag moves close to the dispenserarea and trips the electric eye 216. The advancement of the wrap tiesmay be controlled by a separate sensor (not shown) for increasedaccuracy.

When the backing layer 130 is made of synthetic resin, the tamp roller214 is heated to thermally fuse the wrap tie onto the bag.

In another embodiment, the wrap ties 206 may be stacked one on top ofthe other (FIG. 16A), having one end 226 of each tie releasably adheredtogether and a free end 224. The stacked wrap ties may be placed in adispenser box 220 (FIG. 16B). The dispenser box has an opening 222,allowing the free ends 224 of the wrap ties to be successively pulledout of the box.

Other features and advantages of this invention may include one or moreof the following. The web in FIG. 7 may be first coated with thepressure sensitive adhesive and then pass through the slitter where itis longitudinally slit to form the hook and loop segments. The very lowthickness of both the non-woven loop material and the hook material,along with its low cost and good closure performance, make the wrap tiea particularly useful component of many products. The wrap ties may beemployed, for instance, to close a plastic bag as described above (FIG.1A), to secure pipes or other building materials (FIG. 18), to bundlecables and secure bundled cables, etc.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be realized, and arewithin the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of manufacturing sheet-form compositetouch fasteners, the method comprising the steps of: providing alongitudinally continuous sheet of a loop material comprising anon-woven web of entangled fibers, the fibers forming both a sheet-formweb body having oppositely directed faces and hook-engageable loopsextending from at least one face of the web body; introducing the loopmaterial and molten resin to a gap adjacent a mold roll, the moltenresin being introduced to the gap in discrete regions between the moldroll and a receiving face of the continuous sheet of loop material, suchthat the resin is subjected to pressure between the mold roll and theloop material, forcing the resin into cavities defined in the mold rollto form a laminate with a surface having spaced-apart resin-coveredregions and exposed regions of the loop material, the resin-coveredregions each having a resin base and multiple, loop-engageable fastenerelements having stems integrally molded with and extending from theresin base in the direction in which the receiving face is directed,resin of the bases encapsulating fibers of said web body at thereceiving face of the loop material in the resin-covered regions,thereby bonding the resin to the loop material; and then cutting thelaminate to form said composite touch fasteners, each composite touchfastener having a surface comprising at least a portion of one of theexposed regions of the loop material, and at least a portion of one ofthe resin-covered regions.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein moltenresin is introduced to the gap in multiple, spaced-apart bands.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the gap is in the form of a nip definedbetween the mold roll and a counter-rotating pressure roll.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the laminate is cut across both loop materialand one or more resin bases, such that the composite touch fastenerformed comprises both loops and at least a portion of one or moreresin-covered regions.
 5. A method of manufacturing a composite materialhaving fastener loops and loop-engageable fastener elements, the methodcomprising: providing at least one longitudinally continuous flexiblematerial having oppositely directed faces, the flexible material havingfastener loops extending from at least one of its faces, introducingmolten resin to a plurality of spaced-apart, discrete regions of aresin-receiving face of the flexible material while leaving free ofresin other regions of the resin-receiving face of the flexiblematerial, at least some fastener loops of the flexible material on oneor both faces of the flexible material remaining free of resin andpositioned to be engaged by loop-engageable fastener elements; andforming the resin to provide both a resin base portion joined to theresin-receiving face of the flexible material and resin loop-engageablefastener elements having resin stems integrally formed with andextending outwardly from an outer surface of the resin base portion, thestems extending in the same direction as the direction faced by theresin-receiving face of the flexible material.
 6. The method of claim 5in which the flexible material is of the same construction where themolten resin is introduced and where the fastener loops free of resinare positioned.
 7. The method of claim 5 in which the flexible materialis selected from the group consisting of nonwoven, knit and woven sheetmaterial.
 8. The method of claim 5 in which the resin-receiving face ofthe flexible material is comprised of fibers, resin of the base portionencapsulating fibers at the resin-receiving face of the flexiblematerial to bond the resin to the flexible material.
 9. The method ofclaim 5 employing a rotating roll having an outer surface constructed toform the outer surface of the resin base portion, the outer surface ofthe roll having forming cavities constructed to form the stems of thefastener elements integrally with and extending outwardly from thesurface of the base portion.
 10. The method of claim 9 in which therotating roll is a mold roll that is paired with a counter-rotatingsecond roll to form a nip, and in which the sheet material is introducedinto the nip with the resin-receiving face of the flexible materialdirected toward the mold roll and with the molten resin located betweenthe mold roll and the resin-receiving face of the flexible material. 11.The method of claim 10 in which multiple, spaced-apart continuous bandsof molten resin of limited transverse dimension enter the nip with theflexible material and are formed into base portions joined to theflexible material and stems integral with and extending outwardly fromthe outer surfaces of the respective base portions.
 12. The method ofclaim 9 in which the roll is a mold roll having mold cavitiesconstructed with outer and inner mold cavity portions, the outer moldcavity portions shaped to form the stems integral with the outersurfaces of the base portion and the inner mold cavity portions shapedto form loop-engageable features on the outer ends of the stems.
 13. Themethod of claim 5 including so selecting the flexible material, soconducting the method of forming the composite, and so cutting theresulting composite, as to provide a fastener product capable of beingwrapped about one or more objects and secured by engagement ofloop-engageable fastener elements with fastener loops of the product.14. The method of claim 13 including applying adhesive to a selectedregion of the composite for attaching the fastener product to anarticle.
 15. The method of claim 5 in which the spaced-apart regionscomprise continuous bands.
 16. The method of claim 15 in which themultiple, spaced apart regions of loop engageable fastener elements areseparated by separate bands of flexible material.
 17. The method ofclaim 5 in which a distribution of the loop-engageable fastener elementsis produced that is narrower than a region of the resin-receiving facethat is substantially free of the resin.
 18. The method of claim 5 inwhich the face of the flexible material opposite to the resin-receivingface is entirely covered with engageable fastener loops.
 19. The methodof claim 5 in which the resin-receiving face of the flexible materialbears both engageable fastener loops and loop-engageable fastenerelements.
 20. The method of claim 5 in which the loop-engageablefastener elements are formed as loop-engageable fastener hooks havingcrook-form tips.
 21. The method of claim 5 in which the loop-engageablefastener elements are formed as loop-engageable mushrooms.